Lasting-machine



(No Model.) 2 SheetsSheet 1. s. w. LADD. V LASTING MACHINE.

No. 510,975 I Patentad Dec. 1-9, 1893.

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ATTORNEYS (No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet 2.

S W. LADD. LAS'IING MACHINE,

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dfy/KM WWW ATTORNEYS WITNESSES:

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

SHERMAN w. LADD, or SOMERVILLE, MASSACHUSETTS, Assrenon TO THECONSOLIDATED HAND METHOD LASTING MACHINE COMPANY,

OF NASHUA, NEW HAMPSHIRE.

LASTlNG-MACHINE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 510,975, dated December19, 1893.

Application filed April 21, 1893. Serial-No. 471,365. (No modelr) ToctZZ whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, SHERMAN W. LADD, of Somerville, in the county ofMidd'lesex and Commonwealth of Massachusetts, have in- 5 vented certainImprovements in Lasting-Machines, of which the following, taken 111connection with the accompanying drawings, is a specification.

This invention is represented and described to as applied to that classof machines described in Letters Patent of the United States No.423,922. In the present instance only such parts of the mechanism arerepresented as constitute the present invention and illus- -5 trate itscombination with other co-operative parts and for a more fullunderstanding of the machine and its operation reference is bad to saidLetters Patent No. 423,922.

In the drawings, Figure 1 is a front elevation of the machine, havingembodied therein the parts which constitute this invention. Figs. 2 and3 are also'front elevations on an enlarged scale and represent partscomposing this invention. T

5 It may be here stated that the machine comprises a pincher or grippingmechanism and operating devices therefor, by means ofwhich, in theOperation of the maehine,thep1nchers are made to seize the upper, drawit upward o and over the bottom of the last and down in position toreceive the fastening tack and by which the pinchers are further made tohave a lateral movement to either side of the center or draft line inorder to form a plaiting of the upper at the heel, toe and occasionallyat other points. The shoe, with the edge of its upper turned upward, issupported and turned by the hands of the workman against a suitable lastrest and in position to have a the pinchers grasp, pull and plait theupper.

The pinchers are supported bya lever, 24, being connected therewith, asshown 1n the present instance, by a ball and socket oint, so as topermit the bottom Or gripping end of the pinchers a freely swingingmovement. The

: pinchers-shank is passed loosely through the vertical, hollow arm of acarrier, 30,whioh carrier, 30,is reciprocated, in one direct-ion toeffeet the necessary front-to-rear movements of the pinchers and in atransverse direction in order to efiect the necessary lateral orplaiting movements of the pinchers. To permit said lateral movements,the carrier,30, is supported in a forked end of a horizontallyreciprocating shaft, which fork, 8], 31, (Fig. 1,) cmbraces loosely thehorizontal sleeve of said carrier and permitting a slight rockingmovement of the sleeve in its supporting bearing, which allows aswinging movement of the pinchers, in one direction, while the forkedshaft itself permits a rocking movement in its hearing which allows aswinging movement of the pinchers in a transverse direction. By theselateral movements of the pincher mechanism the pincher jaws,whileholding the leather tightly drawn, are carried laterally away fromthe draft line to either side thereof, as occasion requires, forplaiting the upper. Supported movably in the carrier, 30, is

a rod, 51, having connection, at one end, with a suitable operatingmechanism whereby it is reciprocated endwise in the supporting carrierand having connection with the carrier, 30, whereby the reciprocationsof said rod,

51, are imparted to the carrier, in order to efiect the necessarylateral or plaiting movements of the'pinchers.

It is necessary that the lateral movements of the pinchers should beadapted to yield, when required, in order to prevent tearing the upperand to that end a yielding, powertransmitting mechanism is interposed between the rod, 51, and pinchers, through which power is transmitted tomove the pinchers laterally. i

In Letters Patent No. 423,922, two springs were employed, which springsare supported in fixed connection with the carrier, 30, and each bearingone end on opposite sides of a pin, 52, projecting from the movable rod,51, in alignment with the pinchers-shank, so that a movement of the pin,52, to either side of the normal position of alignment, must take placeagainst the tension of one of said springs, while a movement of the rod,51, in the Opposite di-' rection to move the carrier and consequentlythe pinchers,to the other side, must take place against the tension ofthe other of said springs.

In operation, the plaiting is performed in a fairly even manner by thisconstruction, so long as the tension of said springs remains equal, oneto the other, but when the tension becomes disturbed, the pinchers areheld normally out of alignment with the pin, 52, the calculation of theoperator is disturbed, and the plaiting is performed unevenly, until themachine has been adjusted to again equalize the tension of said springs,which operation of adjustment becomes more difficult and more frequentlynecessary, as the springs become worn.

It is the object of this presentinvention to provide a yielding,power-transmitting connectionbetween therod,51,andpincherswhichshallhold the pinchers with ayielding tension normally in the desiredposition of alignment with the pin, 52, which shall be disturbed equallyby equal movements of the pinchers to either side of the normal positionof alignment, and further to provide adjustable mechanism whereby thetension of the holding force may be varied adjustably to suit therequirements of different classes of work.

This present invention includes a single spring, a, and suitableconnections, interposed between the pinchers and the lateral.

reciprocating rod, 51, the Whole being arranged so that a movement ofthe pinchers to either side of the central position is made to takeplace against the tension of said spring.

In carrying out this invention, I construct the carrier, 30, with ascrew-threaded opening or socket at its upper end, to receive thecorrespondingly screw-threaded hollow nut, b. Fixed in the carrier andprojecting therefrom are studs, e,f, on which is supported a horizontallever bar, it. Said bar, It, is provided with a socket midway betweenits bearing contacts with the supporting studs, e, f, (seeI ig. 3,) inwhich socket is stepped one end of the spindle rod, 91, the top endwhereof is projected through an opening in the hollow nut, 12. Thespring, a, is made to sur round the spindle, n, with one end bearingagainst the inner top face of nut,b, and its other end bearing against ashoulder near the bottom end of the spindle, so that the tension of saidspring operates downwardly on the spindle, 'n, and holds the lever arm,h, pressed yieldingly down upon the supporting studs, 6, f. A suitableturn of the nut, b, operates to expand or contract and consequentlyvary, adjustably, the tension of said spring, a. To maintain suchadjustment the carrier is suitably slotted and provided with a clampscrew, 3, whereby to clamp and firmly hold the nut, b, as shown. Beneaththe lever, h, and in alignment with the spindle, n, is a stud,w, whichis also fixed in and projects from the carrier, 80. Said stud, w,supportsatriangular lever, m, which extends equilaterally from the studand permits being rocked on the stud in either direction, so as to liftthe lever, 71.,upwardly on one side of the spindle, TL, as shown in Fig.2, or on the opposite side thereof, as shown in Fig. 3, against thetension of spring, a. The bottom end of lever, m, is made to embrace, asshown, a pin, 52, that projects from the rod, 51, the arrangementbeingsuch that the lever, m, bears normally in contact with the bottomface of lever, h, and is thereby positioned under the tension of spring,a,

so as to hold the rod, 51, in position with the pin,'52, in alignmentwith the pinchers-shank, as shown in Fig.1. This, it will be understood,is the position of parts named, from which the lateral or plaitingmovements of the pinchers are made to take place.

To effect the lateral or plaiting movements of the pinchers, the rod,51, is reciprocated endwise by a suitable operating mechanism, for adescription of which see said Letters Patent No. 423,922.

It will be observed that a movement of the rod, 51, carrying pin, 52,out of alignment with thepinchers-shank,in one direction,rocks thelever, m, thereby lifts one end of lever, h, and directs the tension ofspring, a, so as to operate through the bearing end of lever, h, andmove the pinchers-carrier,30, andconsequently the pinchers, with ayielding tension to one side of the normal or draft line for laying theplait in one direction; a contrary movement of rod, 51, carrying pin,52, out of alignment with the pinchers-shank,to the opposite sidethereof, effects acounter rockingmovement of lever, m, lifts theopposite end of lever, 71., and thereby directs the tension of thespring, a, so as to operate now through the other end of lever, h, andenforce a movement of the pinchers to the other side of their normalline for laying the plait in that direction. Said opposite movements aremade to take place sequentially, as the intended plaiting of the leatherrequires it.

From the foregoing it Will be understood that the movements of thepinchers laterally away from the normal or draft line in eitherdirection, areenforced against the tensional strain of spring, a,whereby is allowed the necessary yielding quality, so as to prevent thepinchers from tearing the leather.

In this construction, all movements of the pinchers, laterally, awayfrom their normal or draft line, to either side thereof, are enforced bythe rod, 51, acting through a power-trans- IIC mitting mechanism,suitably interposedin the line of connection between said rod andpinchers and includinga single yielding memher, and connection by whichthe enforced movements of the pinchers laterally, in both of saiddirections, are allowed the yielding quality desired, in order toprevent tearing or unduly straining the upper held by the pinchers.

What Iclaim, and desire by Letters Patent to secure, is-

1. The combination of the pincher mech anism, actuating mechanism-forimparting spring device arranged between the pinch-r ers and the saidactuating mechanism, and including a rocking connection between thespring member of the said device and the said actuating mechanism,arranged to transmit the movements of the actuating mechanism in eitherdirection to the said spring member, substantially as set forth.

3. In a lasting machine the combination of the pinchers supported topermit movements in opposite directions for plaiting the upper, thereciprocating actuating mechanism therefor, a single yielding deviceinterposed between the actuating mechanism and the pinchers, including aspring which is put under tension by the said mechanism as it operatesto move the pinchers in either direction and means for varying thetension of the spring, substantially as set forth.

4. In a lasting machine, the combination of the pinchers the carrier inwhich the pinchers are mounted, a driver supported movably in thecarrier and arranged to impart lateral movement to the pinchers in orderto plait the upper, a spring carried by the pinchers, and powertransmitting mechanism interposed between the spring and the driver andarranged to bear equally upon the said spring, whether the driver bemoved in one direction or the other, substantially as set forth.

5. In a lasting machine, the combination with the pinchers, of thereciprocating rod 51 adapted to impart lateral movement thereto, therocking lever m to which the rod is connected and having the arms ofequal length, the single spring connected with the pinchers, and thebearing carried by the said spring and with which the arms of the saidrocking lever are made to bear in whichever direction the rod 51 ismoved, substantially as set forth.

6. In a lasting machine, the combination of a pinchers mechanism and apivotally connected supporting carrier therefor, a rod, 51, supportedmovably in the carrier and a yielding power transmitting mechanisminterposed between the rod and carrier, composed of spring a, levers h,m, and supporting studs 6, f, and 21;, substantially as described.

7. Ina lasting machine, the combination of a pinchers mechanism and apivotally connected supporting-carrier therefor, a rod, 51, supportedmovably in the carrier and ayielding power transmitting mechanisminterposed between the rod and carrier, composed of spring, a, levers,h, m, and supporting studs, e, f, and w, substantially as described; 8.In a lasting machine, in combination, the lasting pinchers supported topermit movements in opposite directions for plaiting the upper asdescribed; the reciprocatingly movable rod, 51, and a yieldingpower-transmitting mechauism interposed between the rod and pinchers,including the spring, a, against which the pinchers are moved inopposite directions for plaiting the upper and adjustable means to varyadjustably the tensional. strain of said spring, a, substantially asdescribed.

Signed at Boston this 27th day of June, A. 80

lVitn esses:

J. FOSTER BISCOE, E. E. HAMILL.

